Migrant girl who died in Texas fled poor Guatemalan village

SAN ANTONIO SECORTEZ, Guatemala — Jakelin Amei Rosmery Caal Maquin received her first pair of shoes several weeks ago, when her father said they would set out together for the United States, thousands of miles from this small indigenous community in Guatemala where she spent her days plodding through mud and surrounded by coconut trees.

The 7-year-old was excited about the possibility of a new life in another country, relatives said Saturday. Maybe she would get her first toy, or learn to read and write.

Instead she died Dec. 8 in a Texas hospital two days after being taken into custody by U.S. Border Patrol agents in a remote stretch of New Mexico desert.

The death has drawn attention to the perilous routes that Central American migrants traverse to reach the U.S., where some plan to apply for asylum, and to the way migrants are treated once in custody. Jakelin’s family says her father paid a human smuggler to sneak them across the border.

The girl and her father, Nery Gilberto Caal Cuz, 29, were arrested with other migrants at about 9:15 p.m. Dec. 6 near the Antelope Wells border crossing.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the girl appeared healthy and showed no signs of distress. Authorities said her father spoke in Spanish to border agents and signed a form indicating she was in good health. Lawyers for the family said she did not suffer from a lack of food or water before being picked up, as U.S. authorities have said.

Jakelin’s death drew questions from members of Congress and others about whether more could have been done. In Sri Lanka: Disputed prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned Saturday, saying he wanted to end an impasse over his appointment and allow President Maithripala Sirisena to form a new government. Sirisena ousted Ranil Wickremesinghe in October, but Parliament rejected Rajapaksa’s appointment.